White Rock jogger Anita Lewis was looking right when a train was coming from the left and died in that 鈥渦nfortunate second of time,鈥� a family friend said Tuesday.
An investigation continues to determine why and how Lewis, 42, came to be struck and killed by an Amtrak passenger train while out for an evening jog with her husband, Mike Grahame, on Sunday.
She was crossing the tracks at a designated pedestrian crossing from Marine Drive onto the White Rock Promenade when she was hit by the northbound train on its way to 91原创, according to White Rock RCMP.
Grahame was eight seconds ahead of Lewis, had crossed the tracks and was running on the boardwalk when he heard the train screeching to a halt.
鈥淗e turned around and went back, and determined Anita had been hit. She was running, she was focused on running and was a little too late in looking to the left. She was not expecting the train, and that is what the (surveillance) video shows. It shows her just taking a look,鈥� said Grahame鈥檚 best friend of 16 years, Greg Fraser.
Both men are realtors in White Rock.
鈥淚t鈥檚 been documented that at the time, she was just making a turn to look, but it was too late. It was just a tragedy.
鈥淚t was a lapse. She鈥檚 an astute person and she was just not in the moment.鈥�
Last year, eight people were killed in collisions with trains in B.C., according to the most recent annual report from the federal Transportation Safety Board. Of those, five involved 鈥渢respassers鈥� 鈥� the industry term for a person walking on the railway鈥檚 right-of-way 鈥� and two involved crossings. There was also one derailment-related death in the province.
Across the country, 49 of 82 deaths in 2012 were similar fatalities, down slightly from a five-year average of 51.
Ontario accounted for the most of those with 33 deaths, followed by B.C. Nearly two-thirds of these types of accidents are fatal, according to the report.
Lewis, a mortgage broker, met her husband through the industry five and a half years ago. The two were newly married and had recently travelled to Thailand and Miami.
She was also the mother to a 19-year-old son to whom she was 鈥渁 very close, loving mother and best friend,鈥� said Fraser, who spoke to The 91原创 Sun while accompanying his friend to make funeral arrangements.
Born and raised in Chilliwack before moving to a beachfront home in White Rock, Lewis had remained connected to her parents and several brothers and sisters. She was a fitness buff and regular runner, and she and Grahame would jog often together on the Marine Drive route.
Her boss, Jared Dreyer, said Lewis would be 鈥減rofoundly missed.鈥�
鈥淪he was a consummate mortgage professional respected by everyone in our industry. She was adored by her clients,鈥� he wrote in an email. 鈥淪he had so much energy and enthusiasm for life. She deeply loved her family. She loved to travel and stay fit. It is a tragic loss.鈥�
The investigation has yet to determine whether the Amtrak train blew its whistle, what speed the train was travelling, whether Lewis was wearing headphones and, if so, listening to anything at loud volume.
Although Lewis was crossing the tracks in a designated area, moving trains still have the right of way, said RCMP Const. Janelle Shoihet. There are no arms at the crossing because there is no vehicular traffic.
As for the train鈥檚 whistle, it could take a while to determine if and when it blew, due to conflicting reports from witnesses, including nearby off-duty first responders who rushed to help.
鈥淲hether we will ever definitively be able to say, I don鈥檛 know. We have to go through the investigation and see,鈥� Shoihet said.
Under 91原创 law, the maximum speed for freight and passenger trains in the area is 34 kilometres per hour, and speeds increase as trains head out of the city, said Gus Melonas, spokesman for BNSF Railway, which owns and maintains the track.
